Li Ka-shing's Ports Deal Trips Up Son's China Insurance Ambition
Richard, Li Ka-shing's younger son, was in advanced discussions to ink a deal that would have given his firm an insurance license in China when the ports sale was announced in early March, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private matters. Talks have since been suspended amid uncertainty over Beijing's opposition to the Panama ports deal, the people said.
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Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NI Holdings, Inc. Reports Results for Second Quarter Ended June 30, 2025
FARGO, N.D., Aug. 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NI Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: NODK) announced today results for the quarter ended June 30, 2025. Summary of Second Quarter 2025 Results – Continuing Operations(All comparisons vs. continuing operations for the second quarter of 2024, unless noted otherwise) Direct written premiums of $109.5 million compared to $118.5 million. This reduction was driven by Non-Standard Auto (-56.4%) due to the continued impact of the strategic decision to significantly decrease our Non-Standard Auto premiums, partially offset by Home and Farm (8.1%) driven by higher rate and insured values along with new business growth in North Dakota. Combined ratio of 125.1% versus 113.7%, primarily driven by higher unfavorable development of liability loss claims in Non-Standard Auto, decreased net earned premiums in Non-Standard Auto and a significant catastrophe event in North Dakota that exceeded the Company's $20M reinsurance retention. Total pre-tax catastrophe losses, net of reinsurance, of $20.0 million for the quarter and year-to-date, which adversely impacted the second quarter and year-to-date loss and loss adjustment expense ratios by 30.2 and 15.7 percentage points, respectively. Net investment income increased 40.8% to $2.7 million, primarily driven by higher reinvestment rates in our fixed income portfolio and higher net realized gains. Basic loss per share of ($0.57) compared to ($0.36). Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30, Dollars in thousands, except per share data(unaudited) 2025 2024 Change 2025 2024 Change Direct written premiums $109,519 $118,472 (7.6%) $177,247 $201.513 (12.0%) Net earned premiums $73,005 $85,169 (14.3%) $140,502 $155,053 (9.4%) Loss and LAE ratio 91.2% 81.4% 9.8 pts 74.8% 70.6% 4.2 pts Expense ratio 33.9% 32.3% 1.6 pts 35.5% 34.2% 1.3 pts Combined ratio 125.1% 113.7% 11.4 pts 110.3% 104.8% 5.5 pts Net loss attributable to NI Holdings $(12,051) $(19,622) (38.6%) $(5,591) $(13,203) (57.7%) Continuing operations $(12,051) $(7,478) 61.2% $(5,591) $(543) NM Discontinued operations - $(996) NM - $(1,512) NM Loss on sale of discontinued operations - $(11,148) NM - $(11,148) NM Return on average equity (19.4%) (12.8%) (6.6) pts (4.6%) (0.5%) (4.1) pts Basic loss per share $(0.57) $(0.94) (39.4%) $(0.27) $(0.63) (57.1%) Continuing operations $(0.57) $(0.36) 58.3% $(0.27) $(0.03) NM NM = not meaningful Management Commentary 'I want to begin by acknowledging the impact the recent historic storms have had on our North Dakota communities,' said Seth Daggett, President and Chief Executive Officer. 'We are committed to continuing to provide support to help our insureds navigate these difficult times, and together, we will rebuild stronger and move forward. Turning to results, the second quarter was negatively impacted by the catastrophe event in North Dakota, primarily in Home and Farm, offset by favorable weather conditions in South Dakota and Nebraska. The favorable results in South Dakota and Nebraska demonstrate the impact of underwriting changes and geographic diversification we have undertaken in recent years, and we continue to be pleased with the results of those actions. Our high-quality investment portfolio continued to provide positive returns, benefiting from the higher reinvestment rates in our fixed income portfolio. Although we faced a challenging quarter, including further unfavorable prior year reserve development in Non-Standard Auto, we remain confident in the strength of our core business and our ability to provide appropriate returns over time.' The Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and latest financial supplement can be found on the Company's website at The Company's filings with the SEC can also be found at NI Holdings, Inc. is an insurance holding company. The Company is a North Dakota business corporation that is the stock holding company of Nodak Insurance Company and became such in connection with the conversion of Nodak Mutual Insurance Company from a mutual to stock form of organization and the creation of a mutual holding company. The conversion was consummated on March 13, 2017. Immediately following the conversion, all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Nodak Insurance Company were issued to Nodak Mutual Group, Inc., which then contributed the shares to NI Holdings in exchange for 55% of the outstanding shares of common stock of NI Holdings. Nodak Insurance Company then became a wholly-owned stock subsidiary of NI Holdings. NI Holdings' financial statements are the consolidated financial results of NI Holdings; Nodak Insurance, including Nodak's wholly-owned subsidiaries American West Insurance Company, Primero Insurance Company, and Battle Creek Insurance Company; Direct Auto Insurance Company; and Westminster Insurance Company until the date of sale. Some of the statements included in this news release, particularly those anticipating future financial performance, including investment performance and yields, business prospects, growth and operating strategies, the impact of underwriting changes and other strategic actions on operating results, our plans to increase investments in people and technology, enhance distribution management efforts, and focus on expense management initiatives, our ability to generate consistent profitable growth and create lasting value for our shareholders, and similar matters, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results could vary materially. Factors that could cause actual results to vary materially include: our ability to maintain profitable operations, the adequacy of the loss and loss adjustment expense reserves, business and economic conditions, the changes in the international trade policies and the potential impact of such changes, interest rates, competition from various insurance and other financial businesses, terrorism, the availability and cost of reinsurance, adverse and catastrophic weather events, including the impacts of climate change, legal and judicial developments, changes in regulatory requirements, our ability to integrate and manage successfully the insurance companies we may acquire from time to time, the impact of inflation on our operating results, and other risks we describe in the periodic reports we file with the SEC. You should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. We disclaim any obligation to update such statements or to announce publicly the results of any revisions that we may make to any forward-looking statements to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances after the date of such statements. For a detailed discussion of the risk factors that could affect our actual results, please refer to the risk factors identified in our SEC reports, including, but not limited to our Annual Report on Form 10-K, as filed with the SEC. Matt MakiExecutive Vice President, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer701-212-5976IR@ in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Bloomberg
6 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Tense Talks May Unravel US, India Relationship
Wendy Cutler, former acting US trade representative, breaks down the long-term implications of President Trump's decision to place tariffs on India for buying Russian oil and how that could push the country closer to China. (Source: Bloomberg)
Yahoo
34 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Intel's new CEO had 3 major problems to tackle. This week he got a new one.
Intel (INTC) CEO Lip-Bu Tan came aboard the troubled chipmaker in March with multiple harrowing tasks: deciding the fate of the company's cash-bleeding manufacturing division, stemming losses in its legacy computer chip business, and catching up in the AI race. Now he has another, arguably more daunting problem: President Trump. Trump called for Tan's resignation in a post early Thursday on his social media platform, Truth Social, writing, "The CEO of INTEL is highly CONFLICTED and must resign, immediately." The post came minutes after Fox Business covered recent criticism of the CEO from Republican Sen. Tom Cotton over his ties with China. In April, a Reuters report detailed Tan's wide-ranging investments in Chinese companies made through his VC firm, Walden International. The outlet found that the firm "remains invested in 20 funds and companies alongside Chinese government funds or state-owned enterprises, according to Chinese corporate databases." Cotton wrote a letter to Intel chairman Frank Yeary on Wednesday, saying he felt "concern about the security and integrity of Intel's operations and its potential impact on U.S. national security," given those ties. Tan responded in a memo to employees posted on Intel's website late Thursday, saying there was "a lot of misinformation circulating about my past roles." He went on to express his love for the United States, where he's lived for more than 40 years. "We are engaging with the Administration to address the matters that have been raised and ensure they have the facts," he wrote. "I fully share the President's commitment to advancing U.S. national and economic security, I appreciate his leadership to advance these priorities, and I'm proud to lead a company that is so central to these goals." Intel is the only remaining large-scale US-based advanced chip manufacturer and has contracts with the Department of Defense. Most of the world's advanced chips are made by Taiwanese contract chip manufacturer TSMC ( which is expanding its US footprint with a $165 billion investment to build factories in Arizona. 'No AI story' While Tan contends with a newfound adversary in Trump, he's still on the hook to solve massive issues at Intel that he inherited from his predecessor, Pat Gelsinger. For one, Intel's legacy business making CPUs, or central processing units, is losing its dominance, forfeiting market share to Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Arm (ARM). Intel's revenue share of the market for CPUs in desktops, for example, fell to around 66% in the first quarter of 2025 from 81% the prior year, according to Mercury Research data obtained by investing firm Bernstein. At the same time, Intel's attempts to debut AI data center chips to compete with Nvidia have fallen flat. Its Gaudi 3 AI chip was supposed to produce $500 million in revenue in 2024 — a projection far below the billions of dollars in sales seen by Nvidia (NVDA) and AMD that the company laid out last April. Intel never said whether it met the target. The company canceled its latest AI chip called Falcon Shores but has said in earnings calls that it's developing another chip called Jaguar Shores. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that Tan had been exploring the acquisition of an AI business. Intel's board took its time deliberating the deal, however, and another company is now poised to buy it instead. Intel declined to comment on the alleged acquisition attempt. "They've got no AI story," Bernstein analyst Stacy Rasgon told Yahoo Finance Friday. Tan said in a July earnings call that "Intel has traditionally been weak or entirely absent" in the AI space but intends "to incubate and grow" under his leadership. He said he will share more about the company's AI strategy "in the coming months." At the same time, Intel is struggling to revive its manufacturing business. Intel both designs and produces its own chips. In 2021, under Gelsinger, the company opened up its manufacturing division to outside customers. But Intel has struggled to secure clients, and its roadmap to introduce new manufacturing technology to produce more advanced semiconductors has been repeatedly pushed back. Its latest 18A tech was initially supposed to roll out in the first half of 2025 and is now slated to debut in 2026. Tan left the fate of 14A — a manufacturing process technology that was set to come after 18A — unclear in the company's latest earnings call, which helped send the stock spiraling. Still, analysts say Tan is Intel's best hope of succeeding in a turnaround, if it can at all. Tan has served on boards and in various executive roles at 14 firms in the semiconductor space, most notably including his tenure as CEO of Cadence Design Systems, a chip design software company. Prior to becoming Intel's CEO, he was a member of the company's board but left due to disagreements with Gelsinger, according to a Reuters report last year, which Intel declined to comment on. Investors cheered Tan's appointment in March, with the stock rising as much as 15% on the news. "Lip-Bu is a legend in the semi industry, and his ties to many companies, both in and out of China, are well known," Bernstein's Rasgon wrote in a note to investors Thursday following Trump's Truth Social post. Stifel analyst Ruben Roy told Yahoo Finance in an email Friday, "I believe that LBT [Lip-Bu Tan] is one of probably a very small group of people [in] the world that I think can help put INTC on the right path. That view is unchanged." Of his company Walden International's investments in China, Roy wrote, "I think he is an absolute visionary and of course he will have made investments in strong tech companies globally through his VC firm." Laura Bratton is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Bluesky @ Email her at Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
